All posts tagged Defense Department

WASHINGTON – U.S. Defense officials released a detailed account of their response to the Sept. 11, 2012 Benghazi attacks on Wednesday, continuing to insist U.S. military forces were not in position to launch a rapid intervention.

“The fact remains, as we have repeatedly indicated, that U.S. military forces could not have arrived in time to mount a rescue of those Americans who were killed and injured,” said George Little, the Pentagon press secretary.

The role of the Pentagon re-emerged this week after State Department officials spoke as whistleblowers to criticize the lack of U.S. military involvement in the terrorist assault. Read More »

Testimony before a House committee Wednesday gave rise to new questions about whether the U.S. military could have done more to intervene during the terrorist attacks in Benghazi, Libya, on Sept. 11, 2012. Here is a timeline of the U.S. military’s response to the Benghazi attacks, as compiled by the Defense Department (all times local):

12:30 a.m. (approximately): A six-man security team — four are part of a quick-reaction force and two are special-operations force members — leave Tripoli on a Learjet to Benghazi.

12:30 a.m. (approximately): In a different part of Tripoli, four of the Army’s Green Berets, who are in Libya on a training mission, are asked to awaken U.S. personnel and help with a preventive evacuation in Tripoli. Read More »

The Pentagon on Monday shelved plans for a special medal for drone pilots, cyber warriors and other practitioners of remote warfare, in the face of growing opposition from lawmakers and veteran groups.

Instead Secretary Chuck Hagel has opted to create a special device that will be affixed to existing medals to connote it was awarded for actions that affected the battlefield but were taken far from it.

Currently there is a V device, or pin, that can be affixed to medals such as the Bronze star indicating the medal was presented for heroism in comba Read More »

WASHINGTON – The Defense Department plans to ground hundreds of planes, halt training for thousands of soldiers and cut flying hours for scores of pilots as it prepares to implement mandatory cuts imposed on Friday.

Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel addressed immediate steps the Pentagon is taking to deal with billions of dollars in cuts at his first Pentagon news conference. Mr. Hagel avoided describing the cuts in stark terms, offering a measured view of challenges facing defense officials. Read More »

Former Sen. Chuck Hagel, President Barack Obama’s pick to lead the Defense Department, picked up his second endorsement from a Republican senator over the weekend.

“Chuck earned this endorsement,” Sen. Mike Johanns (R., Neb.) told the Lincoln Journal Star. Mr. Johanns said that he met privately with Mr. Hagel, a fellow Nebraskan, and was reassured about his views on the Middle East.

“He was absolutely clear that he will be a strong defender of Israel, and that’s very important to me,” Mr. Johanns told the Journal Star… Read More »

It’s not the first time Mr. Panetta has waved the civil-rights banner on his way out of town.

Flash back to 1970. Young Mr. Panetta, then a Republican, was working in the Nixon administration as director of the U.S. Office of Civil Rights. His job, basically, was to force the racial integration of more than 500 Southern public-school districts. Read More »

One of the biggest supporters of the nomination of former Sen. Chuck Hagel to become the defense secretary said the nominee has “extraordinary, in some cases unique talents” and expressed confidence he will be confirmed.

Sen. Jack Reed, a Rhode Island Democrat, said in an interview that “it’s ultimately the nominee who has to make the case, individually” with senators. “This is going to be something I’m confident Chuck can and will do,” he said.

The Hagel nomination has become, by a wide margin, the most controversial President Barack Obama has made in filling his Cabinet for a second term. Mr. Hagel’s fellow Republicans have strongly criticized him for his positions on Iran and Israel, as well as his opposition to the war in Iraq. Read More »

The Pentagon could face a “contracting nightmare” in addition to monthlong layoffs for its 800,000 civilian employees if the nation’s leaders fail to cut a deal to avert across-the-board spending cuts from taking place in March, according to a new think tank analysis.

Todd Harrison, a defense analyst at the Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessments, predicted Wednesday that the Defense Department could face turmoil if President Barack Obama and congressional leaders can’t prevent so-called sequestration from going forward.

President Barack Obama has nominated former Sen. Chuck Hagel to be his next defense secretary. Mr. Hagel has been criticized for opposing sanctions on Iran and for criticizing pro-Israel lobbying efforts, among other things. U.S. Here are some of Mr. Hagel’s controversial comments: Read More »

WASHINGTON—Congress should address the spending cuts that are part of the so-called fiscal cliff to avoid painful cuts to the Pentagon budget and staffing, Sen. Lindsey Graham (R., S.C.) said Sunday.

Mr. Graham is concerned that in reaching a deal to avoid the tax increases of the fiscal cliff, lawmakers will do nothing to avert major cuts in defense spending. Mr. Graham said on “Fox News Sunday” that he recently got a call from Defense Secretary Leon Panetta who warned that he would need to send out layoff notices unless Congress canceled defense spending cuts set to kick in. Read More »

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